Cough Syrup
by 17blackwrites
Summary: Blaine Anderson was diagnosed as autistic at age 5. At age 16, his parent's sent him to live at Mountville Institution - where Kurt Hummel had recently been taken on for work experience.
1. Chapter 1

"Blaine?"

Mrs Anderson fought back a sigh as her eight year old son blissfully ignored her cooing, only continuing to run his fingertips across the ivory keys of a grand piano sat in their living room, filling the vacant space with loud, abrasive music.

She'd had her concerns about Blaine's mental state since the mere age of one. He'd failed to begin anything other than sharp, sickening cries and chilling stares with honey eyes. Despite the constant attempts of prying his attention with brightly coloured toys and treats, Blaine refused to spare his parents a glance when they called him.

When Blaine began infant school, his mother and father hoped he'd crack open his shell and blossom into the son they'd always wanted – a bright, academically and personality wise, young boy with a dazzling smile and a way with the ladies. However, as days flew by, Mr Anderson had spent more time away from the office taking calls from frantic, concerned teachers reporting Blaine's odd behaviour.

The first of the calls had been shortly into Blaine's second day. All the children had been called to play. Small boys ran circles around the playground with their arms spread wide, lips smacking together as they soared through the sky as though fighter pilots in a war zone. Young girls skipped with cheerful smiles on their faces, their hands slapping quickly as they sang nursery rhymes and laughed. All accept for Blaine.

His teacher's had tried to force him into the playground with the other children, only to have him grunt and whine, pushing his weight against the carpet. Eventually, they gave up, watching with interest as he crawled toward the slew of toys scattered about the floor.

Carefully, his frail hands and brought all the toys together, setting them in lines and patterns. As he fixated the lines and tucked the toys into place, his teacher's had shared worried glances. Once completed, Blaine simply sat beside the toys, face void of any emotion and eyes glued to his scuffed shoes.

After endless days spent stressing and panicking, Blaine's teachers discussed the possibility of the young boy struggling with a learning difficulty. At once, his parent's had denied it – although they so desperately desired to understand why their son seemed so different.

At age five, after months of struggles, fits of rage and endless tests, doctors had diagnosed Blaine with autism. Along with the news came new problems – new boundaries and difficulties. Cooper, Blaine's brother, had enjoyed teasing him, only proceeding to work up his little brother into a state of uncontrollable anger.

Mrs Anderson was so desperate to just reach out, tangle her slim hands within Blaine's messy curls and just show him the love she had for him. But she knew if she tried to do so, it'd take too long to calm him down considering he ought to be heading for bed soon.

As Blaine grew older, his condition seemed to worsen. His parents could barely even graze him without a flinch or a howl emitting from the small boy. His schools days were unbearable. Just an endless line of special case workers sat by his side, trying anything and everything to grab Blaine's attention long enough to teach him _something._

On Blaine's sixteenth birthday, the lonely boy sat silent against the large couch, hands dancing through one another. His parents stood anxiously before him, Cooper had abandoned them for a friend's party – explaining that it'd be more fun than sitting around mourning about Blaine as though they'd lost him to a tragic accident years ago.

"Blaine," his mother whispered, crouching down beside him, biting her lip as he flinched. "Blaine, dear. We love you very much!"

"We do love you, son," Mr Anderson sighed, placing a hand on his wife's shoulder. "And we're doing this because we love you. It's clear you're not going to make any progress at that jack shit school of yours. Special case workers, my ass! We've done a lot of research and we think we've found you the perfect place-"

"It really is wonderful, Blaine," his mother fussed. "You'll love it there! You'll make lots of new friends and you'll be in a safe place where people know how to take care of you, okay? And they have lots of musical instruments and you can play the piano! We'll visit every weekend, we promise. It's, well, we're not sending you away because we don't want you here, Blaine. We're doing this for you. The doctors there say they can find a new medication that'll help calm you down and, and maybe we can make some progress with getting you to talk, right? I-it's worth a shot, Blaine."

Mr and Mrs Anderson weren't really sure why they were explaining the whole situation to their son – it wasn't although he understood. Perhaps it just gave them a sense of peace. Carefully, they placed several leaflets against the coffee table before leaving the room to cut Blaine's birthday cake.

The young boy sat motionless, pained eyes glaring at the booklets his parents had just left behind.

_Mountville Institution. _


	2. Chapter 2

The following morning, Blaine's parents lead their son toward the car, guilty expressions stretched over their faces. Cooper buckled himself in, determined to spy around Blaine's new home to ensure it was safe enough. A quiet chat had erupted between the three elder Anderson's and despite their constant attempts to include the youngest – it was nothing short of awkward.

Finally, after what seemed far too long, Mr Anderson pulled into a vacant parking space and slid from the car. Just ahead of where the Anderson family stood, was a tall, shadow casting building with wired fences and several ducks padding across the grass.

"It's lovely, isn't it?" Mrs Anderson smiled, inching forward in hopes the others would follow. Blaine's honey orbs flickered back and forth, soaking in the atmosphere that so tightly wound around his neck. He felt uncomfortable, frightened, not truly understanding why he had to live _here._ Cooper shuffled alongside him, murmuring something about the types of crazy people that could be found inside.

However, as the doors slid open, a welcoming sense of home and happiness filled the air. The layout was simple – rather like a hospital but painted with warmer colours and personal touches. A middle aged man with a movie star smile strode toward the family, a clipboard and pen in hand.

"Hello! It's lovely to see you again, Mr and Mrs Anderson! You must be Cooper," he greeted, holding out his free hand as Cooper gently shook it. "And you," the man spoke quietly, looking down at Blaine, whose glance didn't dare move above shoe level, "must be Blaine! We've been waiting for you! I'm Doctor Franceschi and I'll be monitoring your progress during your stay with us. Why don't we head to the painting room and see what happens from there?" he suggested, smiling as the Anderson's nodded, probing their son's forward.

Doctor Franceschi's eyes had yet to leave Blaine's stance. The way his shoulders were drawn upward and inward, the way his feet barely parted as he shuffled forward or how his fingers were constantly grazing against each other.

They arrived at the painting room and Mrs Anderson was overwhelmed to find her son simply wandering over towards the table filled with brightly coloured paints alone.

"Mr and Mrs Anderson? Could I have a word outside with you, please?" the doctor asked.

"Yes, of course. Cooper, watch your brother."

He gently closed the door and flipped open his clipboard.

"Right, it's great to finally meet Blaine! What I'm going to do today is have him paint me some pictures, if he will. If he doesn't, I'm not going to force it – that won't help anything. Then I'll try and have a chat with him but I can see his vocabulary is …_limited._ Did your bring all of his things?"

"Yes, yes, they're in the car."

"I'll have somebody take them to Blaine's room for you. Due to the extent of his condition, Blaine will be living alone, is that alright?"

"Anything that you think will keep him safe," Mrs Anderson smiled.

"Now, you can stay in the room whilst Blaine paints but I feel it may be better if you left when I try to talk with him. Just so he doesn't feel too boxed in, it shouldn't take too long, though! Any questions?"

"Is, um, I'm terribly sorry for assuming so but, but is Blaine in any danger here? With any of the patients?" Mr Anderson frowned.

"Oh, no, no! It's completely understandable, I see where you're coming from, but, no! The children are all sectioned into different areas. The children we see unfit to interact with other children live on a different floor to Blaine and their schedule is different so they shouldn't cross paths. I assure you, Mr and Mrs Anderson, it's best if Blaine's here. Now, I must warn you, we do have a young boy coming in. He's the same age as Blaine and he's here for work experience. There may be situations in which Kurt, the boy who's coming, may need to interact with Blaine – is that okay? Or would you prefer if he didn't?"

"No, that's fine. Just make sure he's careful. Should we go back in now?" Mrs Anderson suggested and the three of them filed back into the room. Cooper had taken comfort in an orange beanbag, eyes glued to his younger brother who'd plunged a paintbrush into a squirt of black paint. Doctor Franceschi gently sat himself opposite the teen, watching with interest as he lazily pulled a blank sheet of paper closer.

"What are we painting then, Blaine?"

As expected, Blaine didn't answer him verbally, only proceeded to run the brush over the paper, creating several black strips. Coating the bristles in another blob, he began to gently thicken the top of the lines. The room was silent besides the scribble of Doctor Francheschi's pen.

When Blaine had finished, he carefully lay down the brush and folded his hands against his lap.

"May I have a look?" his doctor inquired, leaning over and carefully taking the picture. He frowned, holding the picture towards Blaine's family.

"Are they piano keys?" he asked and Mrs Anderson bit back a chuckle.

"He's _always _playing the piano at home. It's the only thing I've ever seen him enjoy, I suppose."

"Hmm, I think I have just the thing."

Doctor Franceschi stalked across the room to where several objects were covered in large sheets.

"We're storing these in here until tomorrow morning. We're just redecorating the music room, but for now," he grinned, throwing the cover from the piano to the ground and pressing down one of the keys. At the sound, Blaine's eyes flickered up slightly, taking in the beautiful black piano before him. Standing quickly, he near staggered across the room and placed himself against the stool. Instantly, his fingers were perched on the keys, ghost of a smile set on his lips as he pressed them down and began to play.

Doctor Franceschi was beaming, scribbling with excitement against his clipboard as Mr and Mrs Anderson sighed happily. Cooper frowned.

"I didn't know he was that good."

"Maybe if you spent more time at home, you'd hear him play." That stung.

"I think it's about time me and Blaine tried to have a chat, hmm? Why don't you all go for a coffee and come back in about half an hour?"

They nodded, filing from the room. For a moment, Doctor Franceschi eyed his newest patient, blissfully unaware of his family's departure, fully engulfed in the piano's beautiful sound. A buzz tickled his thigh, hand withdrawing his pager. He read it carefully, an excited smirk etched over his mouth.

"Blaine, there's someone I want you to meet."


	3. Chapter 3

"Oh God, I'm not ready for this," Kurt gulped, striding through the doors of Mountville Institution. Although the lobby was filled with warmth and comfort, Kurt couldn't help but frown as he remembered that this was an _institution _and he knew it held some very unpredictable people – and he'd be near living here for the following weeks.

After a somewhat awkward introduction with the receptionist, he'd finally received his workers badge and grinned when Doctor Franceschi came bounding around the corner, his confident smile fixed in place, as always.

"Kurt! It's great to see you! Excited for your first day?" he beamed.

"Of course," he grinned, sighing as his badge completely ruined his outfit. "So, what do I do first? Any beds need changing? Any toilets need scrubbing?"

"Oh no, Kurt. I appreciate the offer and I'm sure the cleaning staff do, too, but you're not here to clean toilets. Now," he signalled for Kurt to follow as he began to pace down the corridor. "We received a new patient today. Blaine Anderson, he's 16 years old. He's autistic and up until now, he has yet to utter a word."

"So, his parents have _never _heard him speak?" Kurt gasped.

"Sadly, a lot of autistic children find it difficult to talk. It really depends on the severity, in Blaine's case, I'm afraid it's quite high, from what his parents have told me. However, I haven't had much time with him myself but I'm about to try and talk with him. I thought, maybe if you felt you were up to it, you could sit in and watch?" Doctor Franceschi hinted with a hopeful tone.

"Doctor-"

"Please, call me Josh!"

"Josh…I'd love to but are his parents okay with it?"

"They gave the all clear, Kurt. Trust me, you'll be fine," he grinned, pushing open the door to the painting room. Josh smiled sadly, Blaine still perched at the piano. However, his fingers were frozen as though glued to the keys.

"Blaine?" he whispered, edging closer to the piano. "Blaine, are you alright? Why don't we go sit back over at the painting table, hmm?"

Kurt watched them with wide eyes. He could see the boy's soft curls and his rigid frame and silently, he lowered himself into a seat as Doctor Franceschi knelt down beside Blaine.

"Hey, what's wrong?" he whispered, fingers gently falling into Blaine's shoulder. With a loud cry, Blaine shoved Josh away, burying his hands in his curls. Tears began to trickle along his cheekbones, whimpers bursting through his lips as Josh pulled himself up. "Blaine, it's oka-"

Before Josh could finish, Blaine slammed his fist down against the keys over and over. Crying loudly and banging angrily at the piano.

"Wow, you sure can play," Kurt chuckled. Instantly, the banging stopped. The room falling silent. Josh, with a look of excitement, urged Kurt to continue speaking. "As impressive as that was, why don't you show me something a little softer?" he whispered, kneeling beside the sniffling boy. Carefully, Kurt placed his fingertip against one of the keys, pressing it down. When he moved his finger away, Blaine slowly placed his finger against the same key, mirroring Kurt's actions.

Now that he could see the boy, Kurt's breath had been blown away. He was _beautiful. _Despite the messy curls spilling over his eyes and the light sparkle of snot sitting at the edge of his nostrils, Kurt thought Blaine was perfect.

He continued to press his fingers on two keys, Blaine instantly repeating the notes.

"Great job!" he beamed, Josh watching them with curiosity and amazement.

Blaine then, without instruction, placed his left hand on the piano, playing a small yet simple display of notes. When he folded his hands together in his lap, Kurt eyed him.

"Oh, you want me to play that, huh?"

As Kurt's fingers played the same notes Blaine had, he could've sworn he spotted the fainted ghost of a smile grace the younger boy's lips.


	4. Chapter 4

"Hummel!"

The distressed McKinley student supressed a sigh, spinning on his expensive heels and plastering on a grin.

"Hey Mercy, so, how was the delights of your work experience?" he inquired as they strolled toward Glee club beside one another. She snorted, eyes rolling in their sockets.

"It sucked! I mean, I'm glad I'm helping sick children, but I've been vomited on three times and the uniform is _not_ hot."

"Hmm, sounds charming."

"How about you? Where'd you get stuck?" she smiled. Kurt had always adored Mercedes. It was something about her encouraging smile and endless bounds of diva that drove Kurt to stride through the doors of McKinley another day.

"Actually, I ended up at Mountville Institution. I was a little scared, admittedly, but it was actually really good! I thought I'd be cleaning toilets and fetching coffees but Doctor Franceschi, he's the one I'm working under, tends to let me engage with some of his patients. Of course, I can't come into contact with _all _of them considering some of them are on 24/7 lock down and I'd rather _not_ die on the job. But …I've met a few really interesting characters," the boy nodded, taking his usual seat at the back row and dumping his bag against the ground.

"Kurt…there's something you're not telling me!" Mercedes frowned.

"It's just-I met this boy there. He's _gorgeous_, Mercy! But, his story is so sad. He suffers from autism, quite badly, I've heard. His family have _never _heard him speak, like, ever. But he's so talented. When I first went in, Doctor Franceschi told me he'd been playing the piano for a while and it seemed they'd found his passion but he wasn't playing when we entered the room – he looked so scared and alone. I just, it was so upsetting. He kind of freaked out and started slamming down the keys but I, I just spoke to him slowly and quietly and he seemed, I'm not trying to gloat, but he seemed to, I don't know, like me, I guess? We 'communicated' through the piano for a little while. I'd play notes and he'd play them back and vice versa but, I could've sworn I saw him smile on more than one occasion. Eventually, his parents came back and I had to leave, but they seemed sweet enough."

_A knock at the door brought their attention away from Blaine, whose fingers had stilled against the keys. A middle aged woman wearing an anxious expression stepped into the room. _

"_I don't mean to be rude, doctor, but are you nearly finished? We really must be heading home soon and we'd love to say goodbye to Blaine before we leave…"_

"_Of course! Before that, this here is Kurt Hummel. Kurt, this is Mr and Mrs Anderson, Blaine's parents and his brother, Cooper. I must say, Kurt here is very good at communicating with your son."_

_Mr Anderson stepped forward, hand instantly connecting with Kurt's sweat laced palm. They shook heavily, the elder's free hand coming to rest against Kurt's shoulder. His crystal eyes searched the man's face; understand now where Blaine had clawed his handsome looks from but his stomach flipped at the uncertain yet desperate glint in his eyes. _

"_It's nice to meet you, Kurt. I'm sure you'll have a wonderful work experience but I'm telling you now. You be careful with my son, okay? I'm sure we'll be seeing you around as we visit, right? I understand you're here for a few weeks?"_

"_Um, well, I promise you I only want to help your son, Mr Anderson. Blaine's so talented! Also, you shall be seeing me around. Today's just a starter day, though. We have to finish out the school week and the real work starts on Monday – I'm excited."_

_With a sharp nod and comforting smile, Mr Anderson stepped backwards and he could see Cooper tossing him a nod. Mrs Anderson, throwing him a gentle smile and a wave of her fingers, carefully padded towards Blaine, who still hadn't faced his parents. She knelt down, slowly lifting her hand toward Blaine's shoulder. As the tips of her fingers grazed the fabric of his shirt, the young boy had hissed, burying his head against the keys and began humming loudly. She choked back a sob before Josh was gently insisting Kurt left the room – which he did. _

_The Anderson's and Doctor Franceschi were inside for almost twenty minutes before Cooper opened the door. _

"_Hey man," he sighed, leaning back against the wall, teasing his dark hair with trembling hands. _

"_Is everything okay in there?" Kurt frowned. _

"_No, not really. Even after all this time, my mom still gets so upset when Blaine won't let her touch him. It's like, it's like she thinks Blaine has a choice in the matter, like, she thinks he just doesn't like her or something. I don't know, it's always been an issue but, as creepy as this place is, I'm glad they've finally started getting Blaine the help he needs," Cooper nodded, sharing a sad smile. _

"_I can't imagine how difficult this all is for you. You must feel left out?"_

"_No, no, nothing like that!" Cooper chuckled. "My parents were quick to assure me I was every bit as loved as Blaine. He wasn't diagnosed till he was five so the first few years were a bit messy and awkward, but they've always supported and loved us both. It was a bit frustrating getting so excited about having a little brother to play with and protect but it's kind of hard to do that when all he wants to do is sit and play piano, you know? And God, why am I spilling this all to you? This isn't your problem, I'm sorry!"_

"_Oh hush! It's better out than in! You can still protect him, you know? He may not have ever told you, but to him, you're still his older brother and that's what older brother's do. You may not need to protect him from normal things but there'll be times when he'll need you and only you, and that's when you get to be the brother you wanted," Kurt whispered, offering a bright grin for the finish. _

_Cooper chuckled, a gentle blush brushing his cheeks. _

"_You're really good at that."_

"_At what?" Kurt frowned._

"_At listening and giving advice. Blaine's lucky to have you as his work experience guy."_

"_Blaine's lucky to have you as his brother!"_

_At that moment, a red eyed Mrs Anderson and tired looking Mr Anderson came strolling into the hallway, their hands clasped together._

"_Come on, Coop, time to head home. We'll visit your brother at the weekend."_

_They began shuffling toward the exit and Cooper shouted a rushed 'see you round' to Kurt before they'd disappeared through the door. Kurt liked Cooper – he could feel they were a good family. He didn't feel welcome to just walk back into the room so Kurt remained outside but after just one morning, he already felt he'd been away from Blaine's side for too long._

"Kurt, that's so sweet! Does this guy have a name?"

"Blaine. Blaine Anderson."


	5. Chapter 5

Kurt hadn't expected much that Monday morning.

Perhaps a lazy smile from the receptionist as she sipped at a steaming latte.

Perhaps a stern clap on the shoulder from Josh followed by a star like grin.

What Kurt certainly hadn't expected, was to find the Anderson family bubbling in the cluster of plastic chairs outside the music room. Cooper held a small ice pack to his cheek, just beneath his right eye. When his gaze fell on Kurt, a gentle smile graced his lips.

"Kurt! Hi, man!"

"H-hey Cooper…what's going on?"

"Blaine, um, he-he had a little bit of a freak out. No big deal!" Cooper grinned, peeling the ice pack away from his cheek to reveal an angry scarlet gash that Kurt guessed was bleeding no less than ten minutes before his arrival.

"No big deal?!" Mr Anderson shrieked. "Cooper, he threw a _chair _at you! I don't- I don't know how much longer I can do this," the elder sighed sadly, standing and claiming he was going to order a coffee. Kurt watched the man disappear along the hallway, running a trembling hand through thinning brown locks.

Mrs Anderson chased after him, swallowing back the remaining gasps of a break down. Her inched heels clopped loudly before silenced engulfed the two boys.

"Why would Blaine throw a chair at you?" Kurt wondered, fingering the edges of his leather bag.

"There's a new kid, just arrived, apparently. His name's Sebastian or something. Blaine was minding his own business, just playing piano when that-that _asshole _swooned in and just started _touching _him and _mocking _him. When we all walked in, Blaine was crying but that bastard wouldn't let him go! I tried to pull the kid off of him but Josh got rid of him but Blaine was freaking out. You should've seen him, Kurt, it was _awful. _He just kept crying and hitting himself. Finally, he picked up a chair and threw it and, luckily, it just skimmed my face. I'm still beautiful, right?" the teenager joked. Kurt couldn't help but perk a smile through the sadness.

"Jesus, the new boy really does seem like an idiot. Is, is Josh in Blaine's room with him now?"

"Yeah, I think he said that he was going to sedate Blaine if he didn't calm down. C-could you check on him for me? They won't let us see him because I guess 'cause you work here and everything that mayb-"

"Cooper!" Kurt laughed. "I'll go check for you, be right back."

Throwing his knuckles against Blaine's door, Kurt winced whilst thinking about the awful images that could be lurking on the other side. However, as Josh opened the door, he was pleasantly surprised. Blaine was simply sitting tightly in the corner of the room, a menacing glint flickering through his pupils while his fingers tapped endlessly against his knee caps.

"Kurt! I'm so sorry, I got caught up. I guess you heard what happened?" Josh sighed.

"I did…is he alright?"

"This is certainly a setback, but we'll get over it. Sebastian will apologise later this evening, you'll also get to meet him – he's another patient you'll be working closely with. I suppose the Anderson's are going out of their minds?" Josh inquired.

"Cooper was asking how Blaine was. I think the stress is finally catching up with the parents, though."

"Right. Well, that's expected. These things are bound to happen and I'm afraid all we can do is hope for the best. I've assigned a nurse to sit with Blaine up until lunch, afterwards we have a session and he's free to use the music room again. But for now, I say we go meet Sebastian, what d'ya say?"

"I…sure."

'_I'd rather spent several hours with Blaine.' _Kurt thought. He had no interest in meeting this new arrival. If he'd already managed to upset Blaine, then Kurt would muster up the bitchiest expression he could.

"I'll go inform the Anderson's. You go wait in the music room, Kurt and I'll bring Sebastian through with me."

"Okay, Josh."

Kurt sat idly playing with the warm keys of the piano, imagining the wonder and power Blaine felt as he sat down and began playing his hypnotising music. Playing several of the easy jingles Blaine had taught him, Kurt bit back a smile.

"Well, well, well. What do we have _here?"_

A cold shiver danced along Kurt's spine.

_He didn't enjoy the tone of that voice._

Swivelling in the stool, Kurt warped his cold expression to an icy glare. Despite how undeniably attractive the boy might have been, Kurt couldn't shake the feeling that this was-

"Sebastian. Sebastian Smythe. It's _very_ nice to meet you, Kurt Hummel."


	6. Chapter 6

(I made it December.)

"Hmm, likewise," Kurt snarled, eyes falling over the boy's cocky stature. Josh bustled in shortly behind Sebastian, blowing away the whispers of hair that tickled his forehead.

"Ah, I see you've met! Great! Sebastian here struggles with-"

"Schizophrenia. Fun, right?" he winked, turning to face his doctor with a bright grin.

"Sebastian, joking about your illness isn't-"

"Save it, Doc! I came here to please my parents, alright? I plan to play no part in your _happy family _image you've somehow managed to scrape together with all the other nut jobs in here," the boy spat.

"So you don't even want to help put up the decorations?" Josh tempted, widening his smirk as Sebastian rolled his eyes, kicking at the ground with a huff.

"I suppose that wouldn't hurt."

"Fantastic! First, we have some apologising to do, don't you agree? Come on. Kurt, would you be a doll and ask Nurse Winters if she can show you the decoration room. I think we'll because our transformation from hospital to Winter Wonderland today!" Josh squealed excitedly. Kurt could've sworn he belonged in one of the endless sections Mountville held. He shook them away with a laugh, skipping along the hallways in search of Nurse Winters, a young woman with furious red locks and wide, sparkling blue eyes.

"Nurse Winters! Josh asked if you could show me the decoration room?" Kurt beamed as she nodded, leading down yet another hallway before unlocking a wooden door.

"Here ya go, Kurt."

"Aren't you joining in?" the boy frowned.

"Nah, Christmas ain't really my favourite time of the year. Usually leave Josh to this kinda stuff, he loves it!" she smiled before waving goodbye. Kurt brushed it off with a shrug, hauling endless cardboard boxes toward the music room. He wondered if Blaine would dare to join in with the decorating, if his beautiful patient could crawl from his shell and help him place lights or tinsel around the tree he was dragging through the corridors.

A half hour later and Josh had forced a flashing Santa's hat onto Kurt's head, as well as Sebastian's.

"I'm going to get some of the patients, alright? Then we can get this party started!" Josh cried, fleeing the room and leaving Sebastian and Kurt to drown in the tense silence.

"Excited for Christmas, Kurt?"

"I guess…are you?"

"No, not really. I'll be stuck in this hell hole, who would want that?" the boy sighed, eyes focused on the tips of his shoes.

"You're not going home for Christmas? They don't allow that?" Kurt gasped, shivering at the mere idea of spending a Holiday as important as Christmas away from his family.

"This isn't a vacation home, Kurt. It's a fucking mental institution. They can throw up some tinsel and hang up some lights, but in the end it's just a colourful building full to the brim with crazy kids whose parents couldn't be fucked dealing with them beca-"

"Just stop it! You're not going to get better-"

"But that's just it, Kurt! I'm _not _going to get better, _ever!_ I'm ruined for life because of this fucking illness! I hate it!"

"I-I'm sorry."

"DECORATING TIME!" Josh screamed, pushing open the door and leading a trail of smiling children into the room, several nurses following suit. Kurt sighed sadly, not managing to spot Blaine in the buzzing crowd. However, before the door slammed to a close, a slim body slipped through the gap, hedging the edges of the walls. Sebastian glanced over with guilty eyes, a blush creeping up his cheeks. Kurt had thought Sebastian would instantly begin to harass Blaine, but the boy opted to helping a small girl unravel several lights that had tangled together.

Kurt watched nervously as an elderly nurse approached Blaine with a fistful of tinsel.

"Blaine, dear, would you like to put some on the tree?" Her voice was sweet and calming, but Blaine whimpered, pressing his back tight to the wall. The nurse gave up. Kurt scoffed. Then it was as though a light bulb flickered above his head.

He raced toward the piano, hovering above the keys and pressing down on the deepest note. The excitement and chatter faded away, leaving an eerie silence as the crowd watched. Blaine's eyes flickering toward the sound as Kurt pressed again, a smile worming over his lips. The patients and nurses stood paralyzed as Blaine stumbled closer to the stool, sliding against the wooden seat and placing his fingertips to the keys. As a soft melody filled the room, the patients returned to their decorating, however, they did not continue their loud chatter but listened as Blaine played effortlessly. It wasn't until a moment passed that Kurt and Josh had figured out Blaine was playing 'have yourself a merry little Christmas.'

Without a moment's hesitation, Kurt began to sing along. Words and melody bleeding out into the room as light after light began to glow and the Christmas tree stood proud and glorious. Blaine's fingers began to slow, falling together against his lap. Children returned to their rooms, Sebastian placed his Santa's hat against edge of the piano before heading for bed. Josh nodded toward Kurt, who watched Blaine stand.

He walked Blaine to his room, watching as the boy clambered beneath the duvet. Removing his hat, Kurt placed it at the foot of Blaine's bed and fled the room. Almost an hour later, Josh peeked through the door during his head count and smiled wide.

Blaine was wrapped tight in his duvet, Kurt's hat flashing softly as he held it close to his chest in his arms.


	7. AN

Hello! Please don't hate me although I don't blame you if you do. There's been so much going on in my life for the last few months with exams and such and I really lost inspiration for this story. I think it's been about 7 months since I last updated and that's …wow. I do apologise for the wait but I have finished half of a new chapter I plan to post this weekend. I'm full of inspiration and with summer coming up, I hope to make updates more frequent. Sorry again and see you this weekend!x


	8. Chapter 8 (part one)

The following morning seemed all too eager to appear for Kurt's liking as he stumbled tiredly into the warmth of the hospital lobby. A coffee cup, half drained, lingered within his grip as he messily clipped his tag on with the other hand. It wasn't until he'd taken his final sip and mustered up the energy to take a step forward that he noticed Cooper.

The boy sat huddled into a plastic chair, an image Kurt felt he was becoming accustomed to. His eyes were red with sorrow and the shadow of an emotion the younger boy couldn't quite place wore heavy upon his features. Kurt strode over, plopping himself down beside Cooper with a sigh.

"Is everything alright?"

"No – no, I'm not sure everything is, Kurt. I heard my mom and dad last night. They were arguing about this place," he gestured to the corridor and the rooms with distaste. "Mom's still in this delusion that one day Blaine will wake up and be better, you know? I heard her cry about how she has all of these memories, happy ones, of me and her, even dad sometimes. She cried about the trips we used to take and the stupid birthday parties that I knew my dad hated because I made him dress up every year. I didn't even like the costumes, I just liked it because I knew it made mom laugh. I heard dad telling her that it wasn't Blaine's fault that they didn't have memories with him. He's always been the one that's been more caring to his condition. I turned into a real ass when he was born , you know? I was jealous because I thought he'd steal all the attention away from me because he was so cute and my mom and dad looked at him with so much love it almost hurt. And-and shit Kurt, when I found out how fucked up he is, I was almost happy. You know why?" Cooper sobbed, voice breaking. "Because it gave me another chance to be the better son. God, how fucked up is that? My little brother is diagnosed with autism and I celebrate it! I wish I could've been there those nights when he was screaming so much the neighbours would have to knock on the door and tell them to do something about it or they'd call the police. I'd have put them right in their places. I broke my mom's heart every time I said I'd rather be out with my friends than listening to Blaine play that stupid piano. I don't want him to hate me, Kurt! What if he hates me?"

"Cooper," Kurt began, placing a reassuring hand on the elder's shoulder. "He could never hate you. There may have been times when you were scared or jealous or whatever but what matters now is that Blaine needs you and you're here. Your mom and dad have been through an incredible amount, so have you! It must have taken so much courage to choose to help him and they're bound to be a little upset and they're just looking for someone to blame. It'll all work out, I do promise you."

"Thanks Kurt. these heart to hearts are becoming a little frequent, aren't they?" he joked. "I'm here to visit Blaine, obviously, but they won't let me in. The doctor said Blaine was having a slow morning – whatever that means."

"I'll go see if I can ease some information out of Josh, I need to be getting into work anyway. I'll speak to you soon!"

Kurt abandoned Cooper with a nod, strolling towards Blaine's room and gently pushing open the door. He immediately spotted Josh sitting at the foot of Blaine's bed with a shape huddled beneath a blanket that Kurt assumed, and hoped, was Blaine at the other end. Josh quickly noticed him.

"Ah! Kurt! It seems Blaine is having quite a rough morning and refuses to come out from beneath his blanket. He hasn't even eaten breakfast yet and we still need to get him dressed and ready and Cooper is outside and waiting to see him but I'm being a doctor before a friend, you know? Tell me I'm doing the right thing and not just being an insensitive tosser."

"You should calm down!" Kurt chuckled, smiling as the huddle of blankets moved slighty at the sound of his voice. "Sometimes I feel like I'm the doctor! Just go and have a nice long chat with Cooper, I think he needs it. I can handle Blaine for now."

"But Kurt that would be illegal and very inappropriate-"

"When has anything about this been either of those things? Seriously, I can handle him. I think my voice soothes him."

As soon as Josh left the room, with some hesitation, Kurt slid himself onto the bed and fingered the tattered edges of the blanket.

"Blaine?" he cooed. "Do you think it'd be okay if you came out now? It must be awfully hot under there and I want to see your face."

Blaine made a grunt and whine of recognition before the fabric slowly but surely slid away, revealing a mop of curly hair.

"Good morning!" Kurt cheered, heart melting slightly as the dying flashing brought his eyes to Blaine's chest, where his Santa's hat from the previous night lay. "Sleep with that, did you?" he grinned.

Blaine fidgeted slightly before bringing the hat to his lips and kissing it gently. Kurt didn't know what to do, overwhelmed with emotion because this frightened boy who'd barely had a life was connecting with him.


End file.
